Date: Wed, 05 Feb 2003 23:45:06 -0600
From: pns kid
Subject: Sojourn chapter 30
The story below is a work of fiction and contains erotic and/or sexually
explicit behavior between consenting males. If you find this type of writing
offensive, or if you are underage and it is illegal to view it, please do
not read further, but exit now.
The author reserves all copyright privileges. This work may not be
reproduced, except for personal use, without permission of the author, and
may not be linked to any pay sites.
Author's note - Boy, did I get a lot of emails after the last two chapters.
Keep the emails coming. Dan
Chapter 30
Sean and Adam were doing fine but both missed Rick. Adam was behaving but
Sean could see a melancholy descending on Adam. The third night after Rick
had been gone, Adam asked if he had been a bad boy and if his Dad was coming
back or had be gone for good. Sean's heart broke. Adam was too young to
understand the gravity of the situation. At 4 years old, the world revolves
around you. In Adam's case, he believed that his Dad was angry with him and
had gone away as punishment. Sean assured Adam that he was a good boy and
his Dad loved him very much. When Rick called that evening to give an
update, Sean put Adam on the phone. His eyes brightened as he told his Dad
about the latest Dexter's Laboratory he watched and the Hot Dogs he had for
dinner.
Mark was back in Nashville holding things together. He missed Alice but
knew that her place now was with Ethan. Alice sounded tired and Mark could
tell that her spirit was fading. She had talked with him about Ethan's
situation and the decision they had made to disconnect Ethan's life support.
Mark knew that this was the greatest pain any parent could possibly
endure. Alice had explained that Sarah, Rick and herself would be at
Ethan's bedside and stay there until, well, she couldn't bring herself to
say it but Mark knew. Until Ethan died.
The three stayed at Ethan's bedside for the first hour after the machines
were disconnected. Just over a week ago then were on board Tranquility.
Enjoying themselves. Surrounded by the open sea and the beauty of
Tranquility. Ethan was beaming with pride, love, and full of life. Now
they were standing at his bedside. Waiting for him to die.
Ethan held on. His heart beat and pulse rate remained unchanged for the
next two days. Sarah went to work during the day and spent the evenings
with Ethan, Rick, and Alice. They could spend more time with Ethan since he
had been moved into a private room in the critical care ward.
Sarah had a lot of work to handle now that she was acting CEO. The
leadership team at Compass had taken the news of Sarah's appointment with
grace. They knew that nobody knows Ethan better than Sarah and she would be
the best proxy for Ethan. Where there could have been a mutiny by having a
personal assistant now being the leader of a huge business empire, there was
instead support and solidarity of purpose. This wasn't about Sarah or
titles. It was about Ethan and keeping his legacy alive.
Quest was due for drydock in two weeks. This would be an extensive drydock
not only doing the necessary mechanical work and inspections but also most
carpets and cabin furnishings would be replaced. The furniture in most
lounges would be replaced. Quest would emerge looking brand new. This type
of extensive work was not unusual when a ship was nearing 5 years in
service. What was unusual was the short timeframe allocated for the work.
Sarah had to finish the final selections and sign the final papers and
approve funds to be transferred to the contractor in Mobile where the work
would be done. She also had to do some interviews for a new Captain since
one of the Captains was retiring. While Compass had 6 ships, they had 8
Captains. This would ensure vacation times, illnesses, and so on could be
covered. Sarah also signed the final payment to Meyer Werft for Tranquility
plus the expenses for Sojourn repair works. For the first time in her life,
she approved a multi-million dollar invoice with a stroke of her pen.
A bid had come in to purchase the check printing business for $250 million.
The guys in legal and finance advised that this was a very good offer and
should be considered. Sarah knew why Ethan owned the check printing
business and was torn about what to do. She had put together one page of
questions and reviewed them with Walter. She also discussed a plan for
ensuring Mark and Alice would not suffer financially.
Sarah had gone home after an exhausting day. She had a quick shower and
turned the TV for some news while she warmed some soup and fresh bread. She
sat down to eat her soup when a report came on the news.
"The owner of Compass Cruise Lines and Compass Air is near death and in a
coma at a hospital in Plantation. Ethan West, aged 37, was injured in an
accident this past weekend. He has severe injuries and he has been removed
from life support systems. Doctors are not hoeful he will survive. Compass
Cruise Lines has 6 ships including the recently launched Tranquility.
Compass Air has a fleet of 5 triple seven aircraft based at Ft Lauderdale
airport."
Footage was shown from the recent arrival of Tranquility and the 3 other
ships this past weekend. They then showed footage of a Compass 777 taking
off from Ft Lauderdale.
"We have asked our consumer reporter, what does this mean for Compass
employees and customers," they news anchor said as she segued to the
reporter standing in front of Compass Headquarters.
"That is right Jane, Compass is a large local employer and is well know as a
quality cruise line and airline. The two operations employ over 1,000
people here in Broward County and another 4,500 people onboard ship and
across the world. Compass is privately owned by Ethan West, a reclusive
billionaire that lives here in Ft Lauderdale and in Pensacola. Not much is
known about him other than he is not married and has no heir apparent. He
does have a life partner and his mother lives in Nashville. If Mr West does
not survive his injuries, the future of Compass is very much in question. I
spoke with local travel agents today and they are advising customers to pay
by credit card to protect themselves if Compass ceases operations. While
Compass has a loyal customer base and has won accolades in the premium
cruise segment, travel agents advise that there are other cruise lines that
are very secure and a suitable alternative. Jane, we were not able to
contact anyone at Compass for any comment." The reporter concluded.
"Thanks for that report, we wish Mr West a speedy recovery, but in the mean
time, I guess consumers should be very cautious," the anchor callously
added.
Sarah was speechless. This report only presented convenient facts and would
only cause panic among the general public and Compass employees. Who did
they try to contact at Compass for a comment? She had not received any such
request. Because someone doesn't flaunt their wealth makes them
"reclusive"? And so much for caring about Ethan the human and whether he
lives or dies. A throw-away wish for a speedy recovery was all that she
could say? She fumed for a few minutes and then began dialling the
leadership team at their homes. She summoned them back to the office for an
830pm meeting. This would give her time to go by and see Rick and Ethan and
then back to the office.
Rick had been at the hospital since noon, Alice went back to the apartment a
little after 5pm feeling tired. Rick wanted to be there when the attendant
came in to give Ethan his "bath". Rick wanted to take over that
responsibility and the nurses finally agreed. Rick also brought in a CD
player so that he could play some of Ethan's favorite music. He had talked
to Ethan about Adam and Sean and some of the other things going on. He had
read that people still process certain stimuli even while comatose. He was
determined to bring Ethan out of this.
Sarah arrived and seemed agitated. She sat with Ethan for a few minutes
while Rick went to get something to eat. She talked to him about the
preparations for Quest, the sale of the check printing business, and other
things going on at the office. She did not mention the news report.
"Ethan, please wake up. I need you so much. I miss your way of handling
things. I miss your intelligence and your insight. Most of all I miss your
sense of humour. Please Ethan. Wake up." Sarah pleaded as Rick was
entering the room.
Sarah stood up, kissed Ethan's forehead, and walked with Rick into the hall.
She asked Rick to walk with her to the car. She told Rick was happening
with the news report.
"Those evil bastards. A kind, loving, generous man is near death and they
do this. This is so fucking outrageous. That man up there has nothing but
love and kindness for people and this is what happens to him?" Rick was
yelling, angry, tears streaking down his face.
"I know honey. I am meeting with the team at the office in a few minutes.
We will put things right. And Ethan is going to pull through. I just know
it." Sarah said to Rick griping his arms.
Rick returned to Ethan's room to find it filled with nurses. The room was a
beehive of activity. Rick panicked. Ethan could be dying. He shouldn't
have left the room. He asked what was going on. A nurse approached and
asked him to wait down the hall.
"Oh my God. This can't be happening. I love him, I want to be with him.
You have to let me be with him," Rick was pleading.
The nurse said they needed the room and needed him to wait down the hall.
They would come and get him when they had more to tell him.
So, Rick waited. 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes. He was going out of
his mind. He couldn't stop crying. He had never felt so alone. Finally,
Dr. Garcia approached.
"Rick, I can't explain what has happened," Dr Garcia started.
"Please doctor, just tell me. I need to know, is he dead?" Rick whispered
through the sobs.
"Rick, look at me. I can't explain what has happened. Ethan's pulse rate
has gone up and his heartbeat has increased. His blood pressure is also up.
It isn't at normal levels yet but it is markedly stronger. His color has
improved. We looked at the lacerations and they have healed a lot in the
last 24 hours. I simply can't explain it. This is remarkable. If I
believed in miracles, I would say this was one," the doctor said, now
smiling. "He is still unconscious, but I am very encouraged."
Rick couldn't move. He had thought Ethan had died. And now this news. His
head was spinning. His knees went weak and the room started to spin. The
tension and emotions of the last week finally taking its toll, he fainted.
When Rick awoke, he found the nurses standing around him smiling. Teasing
him about fainting like a girl. They told him to get himself up, offered
him some juice, and then ordered him to be with Ethan.
Rick could see the improvement. The color was returning. The swelling
looked better. Rick took some lip balm and gently applied it to Ethan's dry
lips. He ran his finger gently over the top lip, then the bottom lip. He
then touched Ethan's cheeks, feeling his skin. He sat in the chair and ran
his hands through Ethan's hair. His heart and body ached for Ethan. He
longed to hear his voice, to hold him in his arms, to hear his laugh, to see
the sparkle in his eyes, to simply be in his presence.
"Ethan, you are going to make it. You are coming back to me. And to Sarah
and Adam and Alice," Rick said to Ethan.
Sarah convened the meeting at 830pm. The leadership team had seen tapes of
the news reports and had some initial ideas on responses. Sarah listened to
the recommendations and approved the majority of the ideas. In the morning
the offensive would begin. A department head would go to each of the ships
and hold meetings with the shipboard personnel. The marketing
communications team would hold press interviews the next day. Sarah would
have a meeting with the team at head office. Since Compass was privately
held, they were not required to release financial information. The legal
and finance department finally agreed that they should release a recap of
Compass financial information. Compass had no debt. The airplanes and
ships were paid in full. The office building and other facilities were also
debt free. The cash flow from operations more than covered expenses and in
fact generated substantial margins - the highest in the business. Cash on
hand at Compass and ENW was in the billions of dollars. ENW and Compass
could buy outright many of the "so called" healthier cruise lines mentioned
in the report. And finally, a letter would be sent to all of the members of
the past passenger club. In addition to setting the record straight they
would be welcomed back to Compass with some attractive discounts.
The Compass team, led by Sarah, was on the offensive. The TV station that
aired the report would be sorry. Sarah would be sure of that.
Rick slept at Ethan's bedside. In the morning, Rick prepared to give Ethan
a sponge bath and to move him in the bed. He noticed that Ethan's heart
rate and blood pressure had improved overnight. He got the soft sponge,
warm water, softsoap, and a new towel. He gently pulled back the sheet that
was covering Ethan. The bruises and cuts still visible. Gently he undid
the hospital gown and slipped it off of Ethan. He soaked the sponge and
wrung out most of the water. He started at Ethan's feet and gently worked
his way up, around the casts on his lower legs. Then he washed Ethan's
chest, under his arms, his chest, being careful of the broken bones. He
soaked the sponge and cleaned around Ethan's upper legs, his testicles, and
cock. Rick found tears forming in his eyes. He remembered making love to
Ethan. The passion. The tenderness. He wondered if they would ever make
love again. Rick was finishing his cleaning when he noticed it. Ethan's
cock had moved. It was growing thicker. It was reacting to Rick's touch.
Suddenly feeling guilty and like he had been caught doing something wrong,
he stopped, put a clean gown on Ethan, and pulled the sheet up. He gently
applied new lip balm and brushed Ethan's hair. He raised the back of the
bed so Ethan was sitting a bit more upright. Rick didn't know why but he
just felt this would be better for Ethan. Rick also knew that Ethan would
be very uncomfortable having people do things for him. He was used to being
a giver and didn't know how to accept people doing things for him.
The Compass team launched their offensive. The rival news stations were
carrying the report and were attacking the other station for insensitivity
to Ethan's condition and inaccuracies in their reporting. The response was
better than anyone had anticipated. The Compass reservations department was
having record new bookings and the website and call centers were flooded
with activity. The shipboard meetings would be occurring over the next
couple of days as the ships reached ports where the appointed head office
representative could board. Sarah handled her tasks with great skill. She
answered all questions. Her knowledge of the operations of Compass were
impressive. Any doubts regarding Ethan's decision to appoint her acting CEO
were washed away.
Alice came and spent the afternoon with Ethan and was joyous at the progress
in Ethan since the evening before. Rick went home for a shower and a nap.
At 6pm, Rick and Sarah arrived back at the hospital and Alice went back to
the apartment. Sarah was shocked to see the changes in Ethan. Rick
explained that it had happened after she left. He asked her what she said
to him. She did not respond.
So, she told Ethan about the day's events. She thought she saw a smile when
she told him how the story had backfired on the station and bookings had
reached record levels as the reports were aired. Rick thought he saw it too
but both thought they were being too hopeful.
Sarah was exhausted and left at 8pm. She kissed Ethan's forehead as she
left. Rick stayed with Ethan and put in a CD. He sat listening to the
music. It was the Darren Hayes' CD that he had last played on their
"special" night on Tranquility. When Insatiable came on, Rick felt so sad.
He missed Ethan. He loved him with all his heart. He put his head on the
bed next to Ethan's hand. The song played. As it neared the end, Rick was
startled. Ethan's hand was on his head. Fingers running through his hair.
He looked up and saw Ethan looking back at him. The blue eyes, blood shot
and tired, but there they were. A small smile was straining to be formed on
his lips. Ethan was back.